“And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen” (Genesis 22:14).

“And . . . God did tempt [test] Abraham” (Genesis 22:31). He had been tested before on three different occasions, all involving something or someone that was very dear to his heart. He was asked to separate from his country and city, Ur of the Chaldees, and He obeyed. He separated from Lot, his brother’s son, whom he no doubt loved deeply. He separated from Ishmael, his first-born son, which must have been a heart-wrenching experience.

But now God told Abraham to “take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of” (Genesis 22:2).

This test is beyond human reasoning. Isaac was the seed of promise, a unique son through whom God’s covenant would be continued. Now God was telling Abraham to kill him.

Would Abraham trust God or would he argue about the unreasonableness of it all? Would he trust or would he resist.

It didn’t take Abraham long to decide. “He rose up early in morning” (Genesis 22:3), took Isaac and journeyed to the appointed place. He built the altar, put Isaac on the wood, and took the knife to slay his son. Of course God did not allow Abraham to slay Isaac. He had provided a “ram caught in a thicket” to be the substitute for Isaac.

When the test was over, Abraham called the name of the place Jehovah-jireh, which means, “the Lord will provide.” God saw what He needed and provided for it.

He will do the same for believers who are going through severe testing times. Job said it best: “But He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:10). NPS